Rhonda's Electric Quilt Class - Week 2 - Block Work

Here we are again for a second class on using the EQ5/EQ6/EQ7 programs

We talked about and practiced using the simple tools and made a 9 patch quilt block.

So today we will make two more quilt blocks and explore more tools

Remember - tools are shown in the last few pages of your manual.

So for this lesson I would like to have you set your quilt block for 6 blocks horizontally and 6 blocks vertically. I refer to this as a 6 x 6 grid.

Remember to reset the blocks click on
Layout
Change horizontal to 6
Change vertical to 6
Clear the sashings to 0
If you have a border click on
Border and delete the border(s)

This is what you should see now: EQ6 and EQ7 share the same layout here.

Next we need to work on a block.

Click on Worktable
Click on work on block
Click on Block in the top tool bar
Click on New and then
Slide over to easy draw

Click on the arrow in the left tool bar if you are using EQ6 or EQ7(right on EQ5)

Click on the arrow in the right tool bar - EQ5

So here is a block I use a lot. It is one of my shortcut blocks and also a traditional block. Once you understand the basic way of making and using this block you can change the lines and use it anyway you can dream up.

I count the dots from the corner so I can place the lines the same way at the beginning of the line and where it ends. Also I need both lines to be the same. You can slant these lines and make a different look or you can split this block in other ways. But for now let’s stay with the original look.

Please remember you have to have your line connected to dots on a line for them to remain. If the dot is not on the line but is only close it won’t work. The line will disappear when you move on to color.

It doesn’t really make any difference what size your center is. I counted over 5 dots but you could use 6 or even 7 if you want a fat center.

Now let’s add color. Click on color and color it how you like.

Now let’s set it into the 6 x 6 grid.
Go back to the worktable and click on Work on Quilt
Then click on the set tool. Refer to your book if you need to find it.
Then click on the block you want to use and then click on the square in the grid to place that block.

Now you can play with the rotate tool - Just start turning them and seeing what designs you get when you turn things. As you turn them watch for things you like the look of. I like the x in the corners and so I started with that. Then I turned the four in the middle til I decided which way I wanted the center to look. Then I decided on the four corners in the middle.

After you get the design you like then you can start adding colors and seeing how it affects the design.

Here I added a third color. You can add as many colors as you like and divide up the design however you think it looks good. Just changing colors makes a big difference in how it looks. Adding color and turning the blocks is a great way to come up with new ideas. It’s lots of fun!

After you get the design you like then you can start adding colors and seeing how it affects the design.

Here I added a third color. You can add as many colors as you like and divide up the design however you think it looks good. Just changing colors makes a big difference in how it looks. Adding color and turning the blocks is a great way to come up with new ideas. It’s lots of fun!

Sorry about the size of the pictures. I am still finding my way around this site as far as posting pics on here.

If you have any trouble downloading the tutorial let me know and I can save it as a PDF if you need that.

I didn't get to add this as I ran out of allowed pics. so here is the last of what I wanted to add.

One more thought for this week:

Ive used this block for making checkbook covers and coin purses and hotpads.
Here are a couple of pictures of things I made with this method

the first pic is a coin purse and the second one is a hotpad I use to make alot of them for the store I sold to then. Just thought you might like to see what this quilt block looks like in real fabric.

Thanks Rhonda for another great tutorial. I was able to follow it and create the block and go from there to playing with many quilt layouts possibilities. Again, thanks for taking the time to make this tutorial for us.

You did a wonderful job making this tutorial. Your lessons are so doable. I hope as we get more into this you can show us how to add our own fabrics and squares and how to figure how much fabric we need to make the designed quilt. Thank
you for showing us what we can do with our program.